Story highlights
- Man who helped form Ho Chi Minh's rebels into an army reportedly dies
- Gen. Vo Nguyen Giap was 102
- Giap masterminded siege of Dien Bien Phu, which led to French withdrawal
- Giap also commanded North Vietnam's communist forces against South, U.S.
Vietnamese Gen. Vo Nguyen Giap, who helped communist forces push French and later U.S. troops to withdraw after decades of war in the southeast Asian country, has died, according to local media reports.
He was 102.
Giap helped form Ho Chi Minh's communist rebels into an army while France tried to hold onto colonial rule in French Indochina after World War II -- and he eventually led the rebels in a key 1954 battle that led to France's withdrawal.
After the French left and Vietnam was partitioned into the communist North and the U.S.-backed South, Giap -- the North's defense minister and military commander -- helped guide the communists in a bloody 20-year war with the South and U.S. troops. The North took the entire county in 1975.
In 2004, Giap told CNN that a nation that stands up and knows how to unite will always defeat a foreign invader.
Giap made the comments after he was asked about the United States' involvement in Iraq -- but they also came as Vietnam was marking the 50th anniversary of the battle he led to spark France's withdrawal.
Perspective on Vo Nguyen Giap 03:45
Photos: Photos: People we lost in 2013
Photos: Photos: People we lost in 2013
People we lost in 2013 – Click through to see people who passed away in 2013.
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People we lost in 2013 – James Avery, who played Philip Banks on the TV show "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air," died on December 31 at the age of 68, his publicist confirmed.
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People we lost in 2013 – Life magazine photographer John Dominis died at his home in New York City on December 30, according to LIFE.com. He was 92.
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People we lost in 2013 – Dr. John W.V. Cordice, the surgeon who operated on Martin Luther King Jr. after King was stabbed in Harlem in 1958, died on December 29 in Iowa. He was 95.
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People we lost in 2013 – Joseph Ruskin, who acted in 25 films and 124 television shows, died of natural causes on December 28 in Santa Monica, California, according to SAG-AFTRA. Ruskin was 89.
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People we lost in 2013 – Jeffrey Ian Pollack, left, who directed the popular 1990s films "Booty Call" and "Above the Rim" and produced "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air," was found dead on December 23. He was 54. He's pictured with producer Benny Medina in 2007.
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People we lost in 2013 – Ned Vizzini, author of "It's Kind of a Funny Story," died December 19 of blunt impact injuries to the head, torso and extremities. Vizzini committed suicide, according to the New York City medical examiner's office, though the office did not immediately say how. He was 32.
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People we lost in 2013 – Al Goldstein, the foul-mouthed publisher of Screw magazine and a pornography pioneer who helped move raunch into mainstream American life, died December 19 in New York. He was 77.
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People we lost in 2013 – Actor Daniel Escobar, who played a teacher in "Lizzie McGuire," died from complications of diabetes in Los Angeles on December 13, according to his agent. He was 49.
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People we lost in 2013 – "Great Train Robber" Ronnie Biggs -- one of the most notorious British criminals of the 20th century -- has died, his publisher told CNN on December 18. He was 84.
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People we lost in 2013 – Ray Price, the Nashville star whose trademark "shuffle" beat became a country music staple, died on December 16, his agent said. He was 87.
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People we lost in 2013 – Oscar-winning actress Joan Fontaine died December 15, her longtime friend Noel Beutel said. She was 96.
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People we lost in 2013 – Actor Peter O'Toole, best known for playing the title role in the 1962 film "Lawrence of Arabia," died on December 14. He was 81.
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People we lost in 2013 – Tom Laughlin, the actor who wrote and starred in the "Billy Jack" films of the 1970s, died on December 12, his family confirmed. He was 82.
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People we lost in 2013 – Jazz guitarist Jim Hall, who played with the jazz greats of the 20th century and influenced the younger ones, died December 10, his family said. He was 83.
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People we lost in 2013 – Actress Eleanor Parker, nominated for three Oscars and known for her "Sound of Music" role, died on December 9, her family said. She was 91.
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People we lost in 2013 – Nelson Mandela, the prisoner-turned-president who reconciled South Africa after the end of apartheid, died on December 5, according to the country's president, Jacob Zuma. Mandela was 95.
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People we lost in 2013 – Bill Beckwith, co-host of HGTV's "Curb Appeal," died December 2 when his motorcycle collided with another vehicle in San Francisco. He was 38.
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People we lost in 2013 – Paul Walker, a star of "The Fast & The Furious" movie franchise, died November 30 in a car crash. He was 40.
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People we lost in 2013 – Paul F. Crouch, co-founder of the Trinity Broadcasting Network, died November 30 at age 79, according to his website and the network's Facebook page.
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People we lost in 2013 – Comedian Jay Leggett, who produced a documentary about the joys of deer hunting, died of natural causes at the end of a deer hunt on November 23. He was 50.
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People we lost in 2013 – Officer Pat Rogers, featured on the TNT reality show "Boston's Finest," apparently took his own life on November 19, a police source said.
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People we lost in 2013 – Renowned psychic Sylvia Browne, a leader in the paranormal world who appeared regularly on television and radio and also wrote dozens of top-selling books, died November 20 in a northern California hospital, according to her website. She is pictured here with her granddaughter Angelia and son Christopher.
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People we lost in 2013 – The eldest daughter of Walt Disney, Diane Disney Miller, died on November 19, according a statement from the museum dedicated to the legendary animated filmmaker. She was 79.
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People we lost in 2013 – Nobel Prize-winning author Doris Lessing died at her London home on November 17, her publisher said. The British author was best known for "The Golden Notebook," which is considered by many critics to be one of the most important feminist novels ever written.
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People we lost in 2013 – Celebrity chef Charlie Trotter, whose namesake restaurant in Chicago received a long list of culinary honors over its 25 years of service, died shortly after he was rushed from his home to a hospital on November 5. He was 54.
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People we lost in 2013 – Lou Reed, who took rock 'n' roll into dark corners as a songwriter, vocalist and guitarist for the Velvet Underground and as a solo artist, died on October 27, his publicist said. He was 71.
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People we lost in 2013 – Actress Marcia Wallace died on October 25, her agent said. Wallace voiced the character Edna Krabappel on "The Simpsons" and is known for playing receptionist Carol Kester on "The Bob Newhart Show." She was 70.
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People we lost in 2013 – Basketball Hall of Famer Bill Sharman -- who won four NBA titles as a player, one as a head coach and five in his club's front office -- died October 25 in southern California, his former teams said. He was 87.
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People we lost in 2013 – Tennessee Titans owner Bud Adams died of natural causes on October 21. He was 90. Adams, whose team started in Houston as the Houston Oilers, co-founded the American Football League, which eventually merged with the National Football League.
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People we lost in 2013 – Lou Scheimer, a pioneer in Saturday morning television cartoons with hit shows such as "Superman," "Fat Albert" and "He-Man," died October 17 at 84, according to his biographer. Andy Mangels helped tell Scheimer's story in the book "Lou Scheimer: Creating the Filmation Generation."
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People we lost in 2013 – "Bum" Phillips, the former NFL football coach who led the Houston Oilers to glory and struggled with the New Orleans Saints, died October 18 at age 90.
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People we lost in 2013 – Rep. Bill Young of Florida, the longest-serving Republican member of the House, died on October 18 at age 82, his office's chief of staff said.
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People we lost in 2013 – Former U.S. House Speaker Tom Foley, 84, died at his home in Washington, his wife, Heather, confirmed on October 18. An earlier version of this gallery contained a photo incorrectly identified as Tom Foley. CNN regrets this error.
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People we lost in 2013 – Character actor Ed Lauter, who had small roles in movies and TV shows over four decades, died October 16 of mesothelioma, caused by asbestos exposure, his publicist said. He was 74.
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People we lost in 2013 – Jazz vocalist Gloria Lynne, whose career included dozens of albums, died October 15 of a heart attack, her son said. She was 83.
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People we lost in 2013 – Maxine Powell, who helped nurture the style of Motown artists such as Marvin Gaye and Diana Ross in the 1960s, died on October 14. The personal development coach for the legendary record label was 98.
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People we lost in 2013 – "MasterChef" runner-up Joshua Marks died October 11 from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to his head. He was 26.
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People we lost in 2013 – Pulitzer Prize-winning author Oscar Hijuelos died on October 12, his agent said. Hijuelos was the first Latino to win the prestigious award for fiction for his 1989 novel, "The Mambo Kings Play Songs of Love." He was 62.
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People we lost in 2013 – Astronaut Scott Carpenter, the second American to orbit Earth, died on October 10, NASA said. He was 88.
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People we lost in 2013 – Gen. Vo Nguyen Giap of the Vietnam People's Army, a man credited with major victories against the French and the American military, died on October 4. He was 102.
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People we lost in 2013 – Photojournalist Bill Eppridge, who photographed Sen. Robert F. Kennedy moments after he was fatally shot in Los Angeles in 1968, died on October 3.
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People we lost in 2013 – American author Tom Clancy died October 2, according to a family member. He was 66.
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People we lost in 2013 – Hiroshi Yamauchi, who built Nintendo from a small card company into a global video-game empire before buying the Seattle Mariners, died September 19 in Japan. He was 85.
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People we lost in 2013 – Forty years after rising to the top of the boxing world and outdueling Muhammad Ali, Ken Norton, left, died at a Nevada medical facility after a stroke on September 18. He was 70.
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People we lost in 2013 – British rocker Jackie Lomax, who recorded with legendary stars but whose own career always seemed a degree removed from fame, died on September 15 at the age of 69. The singer-songwriter-guitarist enjoyed a 50-year career playing with many of music's biggest stars -- notably the Beatles -- but personal commercial success eluded him.
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People we lost in 2013 – Ray Dolby, the American inventor who changed the way people listen to sound in their homes, on their phones and in cinemas, died September 12 in San Francisco. He was 80. The founder of Dolby Laboratories had been suffering from Alzheimer's disease for a number of years and in July was diagnosed with acute leukemia.
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People we lost in 2013 – Ex-heavyweight champion Tommy Morrison died September 1, according to his former promoter Tony Holden. He was 44. Morrison defeated George Foreman in 1993 for the World Boxing Organization's heavyweight title. He also won fame for his role in "Rocky V."
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People we lost in 2013 – British broadcaster David Frost, best known for his series of interviews with former U.S. President Richard Nixon in 1977, died August 31. He was 74.
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People we lost in 2013 – Irish poet Seamus Heaney, who won the Nobel Prize for literature in 1995, died on Friday, August 30, at a hospital in Dublin. He was 74.
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People we lost in 2013 – British cinematographer Gilbert Taylor, right, died in his home on the Isle of Wight on Friday, August 23. The man behind the visual style of movies such as "Star Wars" and "Dr. Strangelove" was 99. Here, Taylor and director Peter Brooks, left, film "Meetings With Remarkable Men" in 1979.
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People we lost in 2013 – CBS News correspondent Bruce Dunning died Monday, August 26, from injuries suffered from a fall. Dunning was 73.
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People we lost in 2013 – Muriel "Mickie" Siebert, the first woman to hold a seat on the New York Stock Exchange, died on Sunday, August 25, the Siebert Financial Corp. said. She was 80.
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People we lost in 2013 – Sid Bernstein, the promoter and agent who helped start the "British invasion" by bringing the Beatles to Carnegie Hall, died Wednesday, August 21, according to his publicist. He was 95.
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People we lost in 2013 – Marian McPartland, the famed jazz pianist and longtime host of NPR's "Piano Jazz" program, died Tuesday, August 20, of natural causes, according to her label. She was 95.
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People we lost in 2013 – Crime novelist and screenwriter Elmore Leonard, who was recovering from a stroke, died August 20, his literary agent said. He was 87.
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People we lost in 2013 – Actor Lee Thompson Young, best known for his roles on Disney's "The Famous Jett Jackson" and TNT's "Rizzoli & Isles," died August 19 at the age of 29.
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People we lost in 2013 – Actress Lisa Robin Kelly, one of the stars of TV's "That '70s Show," died August 14, according to her agent, Craig Wyckoff. Kelly was 43.
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People we lost in 2013 – British stuntman Mark Sutton died on Wednesday, August 14, after a parachuting accident in Switzerland. Sutton, 42, was well known for parachuting in as James Bond at the 2012 London Olympics.
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People we lost in 2013 – Gia Allemand appeared on season 14 of ABC's "The Bachelor." In a statement, her family said the 29-year-old's death apparently was suicide.
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People we lost in 2013 – Journalist Jack Germond died August 14, his wife, Alice, wrote in a note to friends. He was 85. Germond covered national politics for more than 50 years, including as a political analyst for CNN.
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People we lost in 2013 – Singer Eydie Gorme, best known for her 1963 song "Blame it on the Bossa Nova," died August 10 in Las Vegas after a brief illness, her publicist said. She was 84.
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People we lost in 2013 – Actress Karen Black, who was nominated for an Oscar for her role in the 1970 film "Five Easy Pieces," died on Thursday, August 8, her agent said, after a long and public battle with cancer. She was 74.
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People we lost in 2013 – Sean Sasser, whose commitment ceremony on MTV's "Real World" in 1994 was a first for U.S. television, died Wednesday, August 7, his longtime partner told CNN. Sasser was 44.
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People we lost in 2013 – Jackie Gingrich, first wife of former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and mother of his two daughters, died Wednesday, August 7, in Atlanta, according to the funeral home organizing her arrangements. She was 77.
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People we lost in 2013 – Margaret Pellegrini, who played the flowerpot Munchkin and one of the sleepyhead kids in the classic film "The Wizard of Oz," died at her home in Phoenix on Wednesday, August 7 after suffering a stroke, according to Ted Bulthaup, spokesman for the Munchkins. She was 89. Pellegrini was one of the last surviving Munchkins from the 1939 film.
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People we lost in 2013 – George Duke, seen here at the 2013 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival in May, died in August at the age of 67. The legend was known for his phenomenal skills as a keyboardist, and his ability to bridge together jazz, rock, funk and R&B.
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People we lost in 2013 – Baltimore Colts defensive tackle Art Donovan, a charismatic player who was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1968, died Sunday, August 4. He was 88.
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People we lost in 2013 – John Palmer, a veteran reporter for NBC News, died Saturday, August 3, after a short illness, according to the network. He was 77.
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People we lost in 2013 – Michael Ansara, the character actor best known for playing three iterations of Klingon leader Kang in different "Star Trek" series, died Wednesday, July 31. He was 91.
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People we lost in 2013 – Ossie Schectman, the former New York Knicks guard who scored the league's first basket, died Tuesday, July 30. He was 94. NBA Commissioner David Stern called Schectman a pioneer, "Playing for the New York Knickerbockers in the 1946-47 season, Ossie scored the league's first basket, which placed him permanently in the annals of NBA history. On behalf of the entire NBA family, our condolences go out to Ossie's family."
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People we lost in 2013 – Actress Eileen Brennan, who earned an Oscar nomination for her role as the exasperated drill captain in the movie "Private Benjamin," died Sunday, July 28, at her Burbank, California, home after a battle with bladder cancer. She was 80.
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People we lost in 2013 – Former Major League Baseball pitcher Frank Castillo drowned while swimming in a lake near Phoenix, authorities said July 29. He was 44.
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People we lost in 2013 – Ecuador striker Christian Benitez, the top scorer in the Mexican league last season, died of a heart attack Monday, July 29, at age 27.
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People we lost in 2013 – Syndicated radio host Kidd Kraddick died Saturday, July 27, at a golf tournament in New Orleans to raise money for his Kidd's Kids Charity. He was 53.
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People we lost in 2013 – Musician JJ Cale died Friday, July 26, after suffering a heart attack. He was 74. Above, Cale performs at the Carre Theatre in Amsterdam in 1973.
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People we lost in 2013 – Virginia Johnson, the pioneering sex researcher who was part of a groundbreaking team with William Masters, died at age 88 on July 24, her family said. Masters died in 2001.
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People we lost in 2013 – Former world-class boxer Emile Griffith, who won five titles during the 1960s, died July 23, the International Boxing Hall of Fame announced. He was 75.
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People we lost in 2013 – Actor Dennis Farina, a Chicago ex-cop whose tough-as-nails persona enlivened roles on either side of the law, died Monday, July 22. He was 69. Above, Farina shoots a scene as Detective Joe Fontana in "Law & Order" in 2004.
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People we lost in 2013 – Pioneer journalist and former senior White House correspondent Helen Thomas died Saturday, July 20, after a long illness, sources told CNN. She was 92.
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People we lost in 2013 – Jazz guitarist Carline Ray died at Isabella House in New York City, on July 18. She was 88.
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People we lost in 2013 – Cory Monteith, who played heart throb Finn Hudson in the Fox hit "Glee," was found dead in a Vancouver, Canada, hotel room Saturday, July 13, police said. He was 31.
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People we lost in 2013 – Douglas Englebart, the inventor of the computer mouse, died Tuesday, July 2, at his home in Atherton, California, according to SRI International, the research institute where he once worked. He was 88.
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People we lost in 2013 – Jim Kelly, a martial artist best known for his appearance in the 1973 Bruce Lee movie "Enter the Dragon," died on June 29 of cancer. He was 67. After a brief acting career, he became a ranked professional tennis player on the USTA senior men's circuit. Here he appears in the 1974 film "Three the Hard Way."
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People we lost in 2013 – Bert Stern, a revolutionary advertising photographer in the 1960s who also made his mark with images of celebrities, died on June 25 at age 83. Possibly most memorably, he captured Marilyn Monroe six weeks before she died for a series later known as "The Last Sitting."
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People we lost in 2013 – Alan Myers, Devo's most well-known drummer, lost his battle with cancer on June 24. Band member Mark Mothersbaugh said in a statement that Myers' style on the drums helped define the band's early sound.
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People we lost in 2013 – Singer Bobby "Blue" Bland, who helped create the modern soul-blues sound, died June 23 at age 83. Bland was part of a blues group that included B.B. King. His song "Ain't No Love in the Heart of the City" was sampled on a Jay-Z album. Bland was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1992.
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People we lost in 2013 – Marc Rich, the commodities trader and Glencore founder whom President Bill Clinton pardoned on his final day in office, died June 26 at age 78 in Switzerland. Rich often was credited with the creation of modern oil trading. He lived abroad after being indicted in 1983 for tax evasion, false statements, racketeering and illegal trading with Iran, becoming one of the world's most famous white-collar criminals.
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People we lost in 2013 – Richard Matheson, an American science-fiction writer best known for his novel "I Am Legend," died June 23 at age 87. During a career that spanned more than 60 years, Matheson wrote more than 25 novels and nearly 100 short stories, plus screenplays for TV and film.
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People we lost in 2013 – James Gandolfini died at the age of 51, after an apparent heart attack. Gandolfini became a fan favorite for his role as mob boss Tony Soprano on HBO's "The Sopranos."
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People we lost in 2013 – Country music singer/songwriter Slim Whitman died on June 19, his son-in-law Roy Beagle told CNN. He was 90. Above, Whitman poses with his guitar at a press conference at the Prince of Wales Theatre in London, on February 22, 1956.
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People we lost in 2013 – Esther Williams, whose success as a competitive swimmer propelled her to Hollywood stardom during the 1940s and 1950s, died on Thursday, June 6 in California, according to her spokesman.
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People we lost in 2013 – David "Deacon" Jones, who is credited with coining the term "sacking the quarterback" during his stint as one of the greatest defensive ends in the NFL, has died.
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People we lost in 2013 – Democratic Sen. Frank Lautenberg of New Jersey died June 3 of viral pneumonia, his office said. Lautenberg, 89, had been the Senate's last surviving veteran of World War II.
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People we lost in 2013 – Actress Jean Stapleton, best known for her role as Archie Bunker's wife, Edith, in the groundbreaking 1970s TV sitcom "All in the Family," died at age 90 on Saturday, June 1.
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People we lost in 2013 – Ed Shaughnessy, the longtime drummer for "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson," died May 24. He was 84.
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People we lost in 2013 – Ray Manzarek, keyboardist and founding member of The Doors, passed away of cancer on Monday, May 20. He was 74.
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People we lost in 2013 – NASCAR legend Dick Trickle died on May 16 of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. He was 71.
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People we lost in 2013 – Popular American psychologist and television personality Dr. Joyce Brothers died at 85, her daughter said on May 13. Brothers gained fame as a frequent guest on television talk shows and as an advice columnist for Good Housekeeping magazine and newspapers throughout the United States.
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People we lost in 2013 – Jeanne Cooper, who played Katherine Chancellor, the "Dame of Genoa City," on "The Young and the Restless," died on May 8. She was 84.
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People we lost in 2013 – Ray Harryhausen, the stop-motion animation and special-effects master whose work influenced such directors as Steven Spielberg, Peter Jackson and George Lucas, died on May 7 at age 92, according to the Facebook page of the Ray and Diana Harryhausen Foundation.
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People we lost in 2013 – Grammy-winning guitarist Jeff Hanneman, a founding member of the heavy metal band Slayer, died on May 2 of liver failure. He was 49.
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People we lost in 2013 – Chris Kelly, one-half of the 1990s rap duo Kris Kross, died on May 1 at an Atlanta hospital after being found unresponsive at his home, the Fulton County medical examiner's office told CNN.
Kelly, right, and Chris Smith shot to stardom in 1992 with the hit "Jump."
Kelly, right, and Chris Smith shot to stardom in 1992 with the hit "Jump."
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People we lost in 2013 – George Jones, the country music legend whose graceful, evocative voice gave depth to some of the greatest songs in country music -- including "She Thinks I Still Care," "The Grand Tour" and "He Stopped Loving Her Today" -- died on April 26 at age 81, according to his public relations firm.
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People we lost in 2013 – Actor Allan Arbus poses for a portrait with his daughter photographer Amy Arbus in 2007. Allan Arbus, who played psychiatrist Maj. Sidney Freedman in the M*A*S*H television series, died at age 95, his daughter's representative said April 23.
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People we lost in 2013 – Folk singer Richie Havens, the opening act at the 1969 Woodstock music festival, died on April 22 of a heart attack, his publicist said. He was 72.
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People we lost in 2013 – Australian rocker Chrissy Amphlett, the Divinyls lead singer whose group scored an international hit with the sexually charged "I Touch Myself" in the early 1990s, died on April 21 from breast cancer and multiple sclerosis, her husband said. She was 53.
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People we lost in 2013 – Pat Summerall, the NFL football player turned legendary play-by-play announcer, was best known as a broadcaster who teamed up with former NFL coach John Madden. Summerall died April 16 at the age of 82.
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People we lost in 2013 – Comedian Jonathan Winters died on April 11 at age 87. Known for his comic irreverence, he had a major influence on a generation of comedians. Here he appears on "The Jonathan Winters Show" in 1956.
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People we lost in 2013 – Sir Robert Edwards, a "co-pioneer" of the in vitro fertilization technique and Nobel Prize winner, died April 10 in his sleep after a long illness, the University of Cambridge said. He was 87. He is pictured on July 25, 1978, holding the world's first "test-tube baby," Louise Joy Brown, alongside the midwife and Dr. Patrick Steptoe, who helped develop the fertility treatment.
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People we lost in 2013 – Annette Funicello, one of the best-known members of the original 1950s "Mickey Mouse Club" and a star of 1960s "beach party" movies, died at age 70 on April 8. Pictured, Funicello performs with Jimmie Dodd on "The Mickey Mouse Club" in1957.
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People we lost in 2013 – Former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, a towering figure in postwar British and world politics and the only woman to become British prime minister, died at the age of 87 on Monday, April 8.
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People we lost in 2013 – Designer Lilly Pulitzer, right, died on April 7 at age 81, according to her company's Facebook page. The Palm Beach socialite was known for making sleeveless dresses from bright floral prints that became known as the "Lilly" design.
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People we lost in 2013 – Film critic Roger Ebert died on April 4, according to his employer, the Chicago Sun-Times. He was 70. Ebert had taken a leave of absence on April 2 after a hip fracture was revealed to be cancer.
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People we lost in 2013 – Jane Nebel Henson, wife of the late Muppets creator Jim Henson and instrumental in the development of the world-famous puppets, died April 2 after a long battle with cancer. She was 78.
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People we lost in 2013 – Shain Gandee, one of the stars of the MTV reality show "Buckwild," was found dead with two other people in Kanawha County, West Virginia, on April 1. He was 21.
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People we lost in 2013 – Music producer and innovator Phil Ramone, right, with Paul Shaffer, left, and Billy Joel at the Song Writers Hall of Fame Awards in New York in 2001. Ramone died March 30 at the age of 72.
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People we lost in 2013 – Writer/producer Don Payne, one of the creative minds behind "The Simpsons," died March 26 at his home in Los Angeles after losing a battle with bone cancer, reports say. He was 48.
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People we lost in 2013 – Gordon Stoker, left, who as part of the vocal group the Jordanaires sang backup on hits by Elvis Presley, died March 27 at 88.
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People we lost in 2013 – Deke Richards, center, died March 24 at age 68. Richards was a producer and songwriter who was part of the team responsible for Motown hits such as "I Want You Back" and "Maybe Tomorrow." He had been battling esophageal cancer.
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People we lost in 2013 – Legendary publisher, promoter and weightlifter Joe Weider, who created the Mr. Olympia contest and brought California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to the United States, died at age 93 on March 23.
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People we lost in 2013 – Playboy magazine's 1962 "Playmate of the Year," Christa Speck Krofft, died March 22 of natural causes at the age of 70.
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People we lost in 2013 – Rena Golden, who held top positions at CNN, died at age 51 after battling lymphoma for two years on March 21.
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People we lost in 2013 – Harry Reems, the porn star best known for playing Dr. Young in the 1972 adult film classic "Deep Throat," died March 19, according to a spokeswoman at a Salt Lake City hospital. Reems, whose real name is Herbert Streicher, was 65.
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People we lost in 2013 – Bobbie Smith, who as a member of the Spinners sang lead on such hits as "I'll Be Around" and "Could It Be I'm Falling in Love," died on March 16 at age 76. Pictured clockwise from left, Spinners band member Pervis Jackson, Billy Henderson, Jonathan Edwards, Bobbie Smith and Henry Fambrough, 1977.
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People we lost in 2013 – Sweden's Princess Lilian, the Welsh-born model who lived with her lover Prince Bertil for 30 years before they were married, has died at the age of 97, the Swedish Royal Court said in a statement.
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People we lost in 2013 – Alvin Lee, the speed-fingered British guitarist who lit up Woodstock with a monumental 11-minute version of his song "I'm Going Home," died on March 6, according to his website. He was 68.
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People we lost in 2013 – Hugo Chavez, the polarizing president of Venezuela who cast himself as a "21st century socialist" and foe of the United States, died March 5, said Vice President Nicolas Maduro.
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People we lost in 2013 – Bobby Rogers, one of the original members of Motown staple The Miracles, died on Sunday, March 3, at 73. From left: Bobby Rogers, Ronald White, Smokey Robinson and Pete Moore circa 1965.
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People we lost in 2013 – Actress Bonnie Franklin, star of the TV show "One Day at a Time," died at the age of 69 on March 1 of complications from pancreatic cancer.
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People we lost in 2013 – Actor Dale Robertson, who was popular for his western TV shows and movies, died at age 89 on Thursday, February 28.
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People we lost in 2013 – Richard Street, former member of the Temptations, died at age 70 on February 27. Street, second from the left, poses for a portrait with fellow members of the Temptations circa 1973.
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People we lost in 2013 – Van Cliburn, the legendary pianist honored with a New York ticker-tape parade for winning a major Moscow competition in 1958, died on February 27 after a battle with bone cancer, his publicist said. He was 78.
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People we lost in 2013 – Former U.S. Surgeon General C. Everett Koop died on February 25. He was 96. Koop served as surgeon general from 1982 to 1989, under Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush.
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People we lost in 2013 – Damon Harris, former member of the Motown group the Temptations, died at age 62 on February 18. Harris, center on the stool, poses for a portrait with fellow members of The Temptations circa 1974.
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People we lost in 2013 – Lou Myers, a stage, film and TV actor who memorably portrayed Mr. Gaines on the comedy "A Different World," died on February 19 at the age of 75.
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People we lost in 2013 – Los Angeles Laker owner Jerry Buss died February 18 at age 80. Buss, who had owned the Lakers since 1979, was credited with procuring the likes of Earvin "Magic" Johnson, James Worthy, Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant. The Lakers won 10 NBA championships and 16 Western Conference titles under Buss' ownership.
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People we lost in 2013 – Country singer Mindy McCready was found dead on February 17 of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, authorities said. She was 37. During her career, McCready landed 14 songs and six albums on the Billboard country charts.
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People we lost in 2013 – Ed Koch, the brash former New York mayor, died February 1 of congestive heart failure at 88, his spokesman said.
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People we lost in 2013 – Patty Andrews, center, the last surviving member of the Andrews Sisters, died at her Northridge, California, home on January 30, her publicist Alan Eichler said. She was 94. Patty is seen in this 1948 photograph with her sisters Maxene, left, and Laverne.
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People we lost in 2013 – Baseball Hall of Famer and St. Louis Cardinals great Stan Musial died on January 19, according to his former team. He was 92.
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People we lost in 2013 – Baseball Hall of Fame manager Earl Sidney Weaver, who led the Baltimore Orioles to four pennants and a World Series title with a pugnacity toward umpires, died January 19 of an apparent heart attack at age 82, Major League Baseball said.
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People we lost in 2013 – Pauline Phillips, better known to millions of newspaper readers as the original Dear Abby advice columnist, has died after a long battle with Alzheimer's Disease. She died January 16 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, at age 94.
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People we lost in 2013 – Aaron Swartz, the Internet activist who co-wrote the initial specification for RSS, committed suicide, a relative told CNN on January 12. He was 26. Swartz also co-founded Demand Progress, a political action group that campaigns against Internet censorship.
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People we lost in 2013 – Claude Nobs, the founder of the Montreux Jazz Festival, died aged 76 following a skiing accident.
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People we lost in 2013 – Richard Ben Cramer, the Pulitzer Prize-winning writer whose 1992 book "What It Takes" remains one of the most detailed and passionate of all presidential campaign chronicles, died January 7, according to his longtime agent. He was 62.
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People we lost in 2013 – Director and stuntman David R. Ellis died on January 7. He directed "Snakes on a Plane."
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People we lost in 2013 – Tony Lip, who played mob figures in the hit cable show "The Sopranos" and several critically acclaimed movies, died January 4, a funeral home official said. Lip, whose real name was Frank Vallelonga, was 82.
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People we lost in 2013 – Character actor Ned Wertimer, known to fans of "The Jeffersons" as the doorman Ralph Hart, died on January 2. He was 89.
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People we lost in 2013 – Pop-country singer Patti Page died on January 1 in Encinitas, California. She was 85. Born Clara Ann Fowler, Page was the best-selling female artist of the 1950s and had 19 gold and 14 platinum singles.
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"When people have the spirit to reach for independent sovereignty ... and show solidarity, it means the people can defeat the enemy," Giap told CNN.
Born into a family of rice farmers, Giap got involved in politics at an early age. At 18 his politics got him thrown in jail, under suspicion of revolutionary agitation.
He earned a doctorate and students remember him as unusually passionate about military strategy. Theory became reality for Giap in the 1940s when he joined Ho Chi Minh and battled French colonial forces.
In 1954, Giap led the communist force in one of his most famous victories -- a 55-day seige of French forces at Dien Bien Phu, in the north of the country.
The siege ended when the French troops, worn down by constant artillery barrages and unable to resupply by air, surrendered on May 7, 1954.
That defeat saw the French withdraw, followed by the partitioning of Vietnam.
When American forces became involved in Vietnam, Giap championed guerrilla tactics, which became one of the hallmarks of the conflict.
Giap was the North's defense minister during the Tet offensive against U.S. and U.S.-backed forces in 1968. The surprise attack during the Vietnamese New Year festival targeted dozens of cities in South Vietnam, and both sides suffered heavy casualties before the offensive was repulsed.
The Tet offensive is considered as a turning point in the conflict, with the United States soon reducing the number of its troops in Vietnam as the U.S. public increasingly turned against the war.
The bulk of U.S. forces withdrew after the signing of the Paris Peace Accords in January 1973. But fighting between North and South continued until April 1975, when communist forces took over the South's capital of Saigon, now known as Ho Chi Minh City.
The 1954-1975 Vietnam War cost about 2 million Vietnamese military and civilian lives, the deaths of 55,000 U.S. troops, and about 6,000 service personnel from South Korea, the Philippines, Thailand, Australia and New Zealand.
Reflecting on the Dien Bien Phu victory, Giap told CNN in 2004 that the Vietnamese could never be slaves to anyone else.
"Nothing is more precious than freedom," Giap said.
U.S. Sen. John McCain, who as a Navy pilot was held prisoner by the North Vietnamese for more than five years after his plane was shot down, marked Giap's death on Twitter Friday.
"Gen. Vo Nguyen Giap has passed away -- brilliant military strategist who once told me that we were an 'honorable enemy,'" McCain tweeted.
